Senior Sara Tashima participated in the Young Buddhists International Cultural Study Exchange (YBICSE) in Japan in July. Through this program, Tashima learned more about Buddhism, visited temples and also experienced the culture of Japan.

Tashima was encouraged by her congregation of Hongwanji and her priest to apply for the program. The program selected eight from a pool of hundreds of Hawaii high school students to participate in the two-week exchange program.

Throughout the trip, Tashima enjoyed the hospitality of her homestay family which created unforgettable memories. She toured famous temples and improved her Japanese by speaking with others.

During her free-time, Tashima was delighted to shop at the outdoor mall, Canal City Hakata.

“The malls where we got to shop were absolutely marvelous,”she said.

Tashima hopes to attend college in Japan after high school. She has been attending Sacred Hearts Academy since the eighth grade and has been studying Japanese for 11 years.

Tashima is taking Advanced Placement Japanese during her senior year and plans to continue her Japanese studies in college.